The European Union has agreed to use the UK’s live database tracking goods moving from Great Britain to Northern Ireland, the first sign of progress in a long-running dispute on post-Brexit trading rules.
An accord was finalized at a lunch between UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly and European Commission Vice-President Maros Sefcovic on Monday, according to a joint statement.
The EU completed testing on the database proposed by the UK last year, and suggested several areas of improvement, a person familiar with the matter said. The UK agreed to work on that feedback, the person added.
Work on the database issue was a “critical prerequisite to building trust and providing assurance, and provided a new basis for EU-UK discussions,” the statement said.
The development is the first hurdle cleared since talks began again last year after an eight-month stalemate. While it is a technical step, a database deal will raise hopes for a further agreement on trade flows, and may help to reduce customs checks between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK....
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